Flying with a young child isn't always smooth sailing, especially when it comes to seating arrangements. A soon-to-be mother, known online as Deekaytwo, found herself turning to the internet for advice after wondering if it was fair to ask front-row passengers to swap seats so she could sit with her toddler. But the reaction she got online was anything but supportive.
On Mumsnet, she shared the details of her travel situation: “We’ve got row 7A and C seats booked on our upcoming four-hour flight. The middle seat is blocked off, and we always use it for our nearly 2-year-old son after take-off and before landing."
Representative Image: Flying with children can be challenging. Canva
She normally books front-row spots for ease, but those were unavailable this time. Now seated farther back, she worried about managing the flight with her young child. “According to the seat map, 1C and F are empty (typically reserved for gold members), and these usually open up just before the flight,” she explained.
The thought of moving closer to the front lingered on her mind. To make it work, though, one of the passengers in the prime 1A or 1D seats would need to trade places so her family could sit together. “Am I being unreasonable to move us to the empty seats in the front row and hope/expect 1A or 1D to move so we can sit together? They’d still have their aisle/window and avoid sitting next to a baby, so I think it’s a win-win,” she wrote, pointing out she was five months pregnant.
The seats in question. Mumsnet | Deekaytwo
She even laid out two clear options for the forum to consider: “Stay in your current seats and let the fancy gold members keep the empty seat next to them!” or “It doesn’t make any difference to them and will make your journey more comfortable, probably everyone else’s too, as her son will have more room to be contained.” With more than 200 replies pouring in, the overwhelming response was that her expectations weren’t fair.
The community didn’t hold back. “No, you cannot expect someone to move for your convenience. Book seats that work for you and assume that any that are already booked will remain occupied by someone else,” wrote user BreakfastAtMimis.
Representative Image: Expecting seats you didn't book is a bold move. Canva
Another, HoHoHoliday, chimed in, “Don’t set out to make someone else feel annoyed. Choose seats that are already available for you to sit next to each other. It’s only a four-hour flight, you should be able to manage your own child for that time.” ThanKyoualMee added, “Only book it if you’re prepared to travel in the seats you’ve booked! I wouldn’t book on the provision you need someone to swap with you, personally, I’d keep your current seats sat together.”
This article originally appeared last year.
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